WWE Survivor Series 2011 Results: The Rock and the 15 Most Memorable Moments

We will never forget Survivor Series 2011.

The Rock returned to action for the first time since 2004, CM Punk won the WWE Championship and The Big Show put a big-time beatdown on Mark Henry.

But that's just the tip of the iceberg.

From start to finish, the pay-per-view produced an action-packed night that we'll be talking about for years to come.

Why? Well here are the 15 most memorable moments from tonight's Survivor Series pay-per-view.

15. Dolph Ziggler's Lightning-Quick Elimination

Team Orton vs. Team Barrett started out with Kofi Kingston and Dolph Ziggler in the ring, and Kingston made a very quick tag to Randy Orton.

But Ziggler's elimination seemed to be even quicker.

As soon as Orton tagged in, he hit Ziggler with the RKO, and that was all she wrote.

I don't get it. Why eliminate Ziggler so early?

14. Mark Henry Gets Himself Intentionally Disqualified

Has Mark Henry finally met his match? It certainly looks like it.

Mark Henry has been portrayed as an unstoppable monster since moving to Smackdown in the 2011 WWE draft, but Survivor Series was one of the first times—if not the first time—that he looked like a cowardly heel during one of his matches.

Usually, he just destroys opponents and hits the World's Strongest Slam for the clean victory. But not tonight.

When it looked like he might lose his World Heavyweight Championship, Henry hit The Big Show with a blatant low blow and got himself disqualified. 

Maybe one day we'll look back at Survivor Series and remember it as the day that Henry's huge push started slowing down.

13. The "Colt Cabana" Chant During the WWE Title Match

At the beginning of the WWE Championship match between Alberto Del Rio and CM Punk, we didn't get a "CM Punk!" cheer.

Instead, the Madison Square Garden crowd got a nice little "Colt Cabana!" chant going, a shout-out to the former WWE star (remember Scotty Goldman?) who just so happens to be one of Punk's best friends.

Man, New York has some smart wrestling fans.

12. Beth Phoenix Hits Eve with a Glam Slam from the Top Rope

There have been very few jaw-dropping moments involving the Divas over the last few years, but the Diva's Championship match between Beth Phoenix and Eve certainly provided one.

The finish of the match came when Beth hit Eve with a huge Glam Slam...from the top rope.

Huge moves like that are rarities in today's Diva division, and it was a nice moment to see Beth deliver her finisher in a massive way in her home state.

Just another reason why Beth is one of the best in the business.

11. Zack Ryder's Post-Match Attack on Dolph Ziggler

Judging by all the chants for Zack Ryder, the Madison Square Garden crowd really wanted to see him added to the United States Championship match between Dolph Ziggler and John Morrison.

In a stupid booking move, Ryder didn't actually get his match.

But I guess the WWE at least somewhat made up for it when Ryder interrupted a post-match promo by Ziggler and hit him with the Rough Ryder.

You could tell Ryder loved it, the crowd loved it as well, and so did I.

Ryder is definitely over, people.

10. Sin Cara Gets Legitimately Hurt and Is Eliminated from Team Orton

Team Orton vs. Team Barrett got off to a bit of a weird start when Kofi Kingston and Sin Cara simultaneously dove over the top rope and Sin Cara took a nasty fall.

It appears that he was legitimately injured because the trainers came out and it looked like none of the competitors were really sure what to do.

Justin Roberts announced that Sin Cara was eliminated because of the injury, and I'm sure this altered plans for the match.

Definitely a weird situation.

If this was scripted, however, the WWE did a great job at making it come across as legitimate. 

9. The Big Show Puts the Post-Match Beatdown on Mark Henry

After Mark Henry intentionally got himself disqualified during his World Heavyweight title match with The Big Show, Show absolutely lost it.

He hit Henry with the Weapon of Mass Destruction (knockout punch) and then put Henry's leg inside a steel chair before hitting a massive leg drop on top of it.

The post-match attack was eerily similar to what Henry did to Show during the summer. It was essentially the same exact attack, only with the roles reversed.

If Henry's attack on Show put the World's Largest Athlete out of commission for a few months, then what's Show's attack gonna do to Henry?

8. The Rock's Backstage Promo

After the Diva's title match, The Rock cut a long promo backstage. And it was phenomenal.

He talked about watching his grandfather wrestle for the WWE title in Madison Square Garden and then making his debut there, he used a number of his famous catchphrases, he talked about all the great events that had taken place in the arena, he ripped on John Cena and he even sang "New York, New York."

The crowd ate up every single world that The Rock uttered, even getting a chant going about Cena's "lady parts" and booing any mention of "The Champ."

It was a classic Rock promo. Man, I miss that guy.

7. Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes Stand Tall as the Lone Survivors

Holy crap! It's like people in the WWE actually read stuff on the Internet!

From what I gathered this week, the widespread belief here on B/R was that some combination of Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes and Dolph Ziggler needed to be the lone survivors in the Team Orton vs. Team Barrett match, with the thought being that it would help elevate them even more on Smackdown.

Well, that's exactly what happened.

Barrett and Rhodes were the sole survivors following the bout, and it was a wonderful sight to see two future World Champions getting what could very well be their star-making moment.

6. The Crowd's Reaction to John Cena

OK, so this can't really be summed up with one moment because the crowd's reaction to John Cena was absolutely priceless.

I mean, the fans inside Madison Square Garden booed the holy hell out of Cena. They couldn't stand that dude. 

Just off the top off my head, I remember chants of "You can't wrestle!," "You still suck!" and "We want Rocky!" all directed at the guy who's supposed to be the biggest baby face in the WWE.

Something's not right there... 

5. The Rock Hits the Miz with the People's Elbow for the Victory

There were countless moments during The Rock and John Cena's tag-team match that we'll always remember, from the "You still got it" chants to two of the biggest stars in wrestling history staring each other down.

But the one move from the match that we'll remember is The Rock hitting The Miz with the People's Elbow and getting the victory for "The Most Charismatic Tag Team of All Time."

Obviously, it's a little crazy to think that a simple move like an elbow drop can win a match in 2011, but The Rock isn't lying when he calls it the "most electrifying move in sports entertainment."

It may not be the greatest move ever, but it sure generates a hell of a reaction from the crowd.

Plus, we all know it's way better than the Five Knuckle Shuffle.

4. Big Show Hits a Top Rope Elbow Drop

Yeah, you're reading that correctly: The Big Show hit a top-rope elbow drop on Mark Henry.

Outside of CM Punk and Curt Hawkins, we don't really see that move much anymore. But Survivor Series gave us the opportunity to see a 450-pound colossus of a man do it.

The move itself was phenomenal, but the Madison Square Garden crowd made it even better. As soon as Show hit it, the crowd erupted with "Randy Savage" chants.

Phenomenal stuff from those New Yorkers.

3. CM Punk Makes Alberto Del Rio Tap out and Wins WWE Championship

There may be no better building to win a championship in than Madison Square Garden.

CM Punk defeated Alberto Del Rio via the Anaconda Vise to win the WWE title, and the crowd loved every second of it.

Del Rio's struggles. Punk's facial expressions. Everything.

Punk finally beat the cowardly champion to win back the very same title that Del Rio took from him back in August, and following the victory, he leaped into the crowd to celebrate his historical win.

Other than The Rock, it was pretty clear that Punk was the most beloved wrestler in that arena tonight. 

2. The Rock's Ring Entrance

The Rock hasn't wrestled since 2004, and you could tell by the crowd's deafening reaction to his ring entrance that there were seven years of love built up for "The People's Champ."

CM Punk got a great pop. Randy Orton got one hell of a reaction. But The Rock blew the roof off the building.

The fans went absolutely crazy as The Rock made his way to the ring, a site that many of us never thought we'd see again.

But lo and behold, it happened. And what a surreal moment it was.

1. The Rock Hits John Cena with the Rock Bottom

After The Rock pinned The Miz for the victory, we all knew that something was coming.

We just didn't know what.

As it turns out, that something was a "cheer-off" and face-to-face confrontation between The Rock and John Cena that ultimately led to The Rock nailing Cena with the Rock Bottom.

Though many of us were hoping that we'd see a Cena heel turn, Survivor Series ended with Cena laid out and The Rock doing his signature pose on the turnbuckle.

Not a bad consolation prize.